Venezuela mulls Colombia's offer to supply power

CARACAS, Venezuela

Colombia could sell electricity to Venezuela to help its neighbor cope with an energy crisis.

Venezuela's energy minister, Ali Rodriguez, said Wednesday that Colombia has offered to supply Venezuelan states along the border separating the two South American nations with 70 megawatts of power.

Despite rocky relations between Caracas and Bogota, officials from both nations have been discussing the possibility of cooperating to help Venezuela ease energy shortages that have caused blackouts.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez blames them on a drought that has lowered water levels behind a dam supplying about 70 percent of Venezuela's electricity. Chavez's critics contend he failed to invest enough in electricity production.